Alive
by UndeadFae
Summary: Before leaving the hellish studio filled with demons and ink, there is still one thing Henry has to do: get to the machine and help the little friendly doodle of Bendy that has accompanied him all this time, because no way he was going to leave him behind.


So this is inspired by Shinyzango's 2D Bendy AU on tumblr, because I had to write something about it and there is already enough sad and angst of it.

* * *

After the hissing and whirring of the machine stopped, there was a moment of silence in the dimly lit room, and then a groan came from the puddle of ink in the middle, a small figure sitting on it, muttering many complains as he rubbed his head. He abruptly stopped once realization hit him, and brought his hands closer to his face, carefully observing them, almost struggling to believe this new reality. Hesitantly reaching to touch his head once again, and then inspecting the rest of his body, almost squealing in delight at the discovery that he wasn't a deformed mass of oozing ink, but the little dancing demon himself, just like in the many model sheets scathed all over the abandoned studio.

It worked. The machine worked. He was real.

In another room, Henry was still grasping the level that turned on the main power of the place, almost like his life depended on it. Well, it kind of depended on it, actually. He still clearly remembered what happened the first time he pulled that level, foolish enough to follow the instructions on the letter, when not even finding the corpse of the character he used to draw stopped him. He almost lost his life, more than once, at the hands of the inky monster- no, Bendy, it might've been an horrid shadow of what the little toon was, but he couldn't deny that it was still Bendy. The thought that whatever happened to that version of Bendy could've happened to the little doodle who helped him so many times through this crazy adventure... it would be unbearable. After all the times Bendy saved his life, even risking his own existence, a future of loneliness or pain like that was just cruel, he deserved better than being confined to the limits of an old and worn out sheet of paper.

It took awhile, but Henry was fairly sure that he figured out a way to get the Ink Machine to work- properly and without spawning demons hell bent on killing him. The little doodle had been thrilled at the perspective of being able to leave his 2D confinement, and agreed to try despite the risks. They only had one chance to get it right, and Henry really hoped that the machine really worked this time, the last thing he wanted was to accidentally turn the only friendly face inside that hellish place into another monster.

It took him longer than it should've to realize that the machine in the other room stopped making noise, and he felt a growing sense of dread in his chest. Did the machine work? Was Bendy ok? What if... what if he was wrong? What if he screwed up and hurt Bendy? He would never forgive himself if that was the case.

There was no point in waiting there, though, so he grabbed the discarded axe, and with a firm grasp on it, he made his way through the old corridors, towards the ink machine's room. He didn't really need the axe anymore, not now that all the monsters were -or at least he hoped- gone, but it was still better to be safe rather than sorry.

The walk didn't last more than one or two minutes at most, but it felt like hours to him, checking every corner and always looking over his shoulder, unsure if he dreaded more an ambush or the result of his actions.

The entry of the ink machine's room was finally in sight, this time without any planks of wood blocking it. Inside, a familiar figure sat in the middle of a puddle of ink, unaware of his presence.

"... Bendy?" quietly lowering the axe until it was resting on the floor, Henry waited for a reaction, hoping that everything was alright.

As soon as he heard the voice calling him, Bendy turned so fast that he could've broken his neck if he had one. His iconic grin appeared on his face as he stood up, almost slipping on the ink under his feet.

"Henry! Henry, Henry, Henry!" squealing in excitement, his voice reminded the man of one of those squeaky toys laying around the studio. It was just like how he sounded in his old cartoons, just like how it was supposed to be, far different from the low, inhuman growl of the ink monsters. " You did it! You really did it!" the little toon couldn't stay quiet, still bouncing around with excitement, lively as he once was when he danced on the screen.

As Henry observed Bendy still celebrating, he finally allowed himself to sigh in relief, a tired yet proud smile on his lips. The machine worked. Bendy was alive, he was fine, he wasn't turned into another abomination infesting the abandoned place.

Henry was exhausted, both physically and mentally, covered from head to toes in ink and bruises, and all his body was aching, but looking at the little demon dancing in front of him without a care in the world... maybe this crazy experience was worth it.

"I'm glad it worked, buddy." he really was. He now could relax and breathe, the trip through the horror workshop was over, the real exit just waiting for him- and he made sure of checking it at least three times before going to work with the machine, he already had enough of being close to an exit only for another unnatural abomination to make him sink further into this inky hell.

"Well, if you're ready to le-!" Henry didn't expect Bendy to go for a surprise hug, hitting him in the chest a bit harder than the toon probably meant to.

"Thanks, Henry..." this might have been the happiest Henry had ever seen Bendy since he found him lonely on a wall of the workshop, the grin he was used to see and draw as mischievous in the old cartoons was now almost beaming with joy. With a fond smile and nothing to worry about anymore, he didn't hesitate to return the hug.

"You're welcome, buddy."


End file.
